Today, as part of the blog tour, I have a review of A Version of the Truth, the debut novel by BP Walter, and it’s an addictive, twisted read! Find out what I thought…
Title: A Version of the Truth
Author: B P Walter
Publisher: Avon Books
[Synopsis]
We all see what we want to see…
2019: Julianne is preparing a family dinner when her son comes to her and says he’s found something on his iPad. Something so terrible, it will turn Julianne’s world into a nightmare and make her question everything about her marriage and what type of man her husband is or is pretending to be.
1990: Holly is a fresher student at Oxford University. Out of her depth and nervous about her surroundings, she falls into an uneasy friendship with a group of older students from the upper echelons of society and begins to develop feelings for one in particular. He’s confident, quiet, attractive and seems to like her too. But as the year progresses, her friends’ behaviour grows steadily more disconcerting and Holly begins to realise she might just be a disposable pawn in a very sinister game.
[My Review]
This is a dark, twisted and addictive read from B.P. Walter. Set in the present day and focusing on Julianne, whose son has found something awful on their family ipad, the story also takes us back to 1990, when student Holly heads off for the first time to university at Oxford. What follows is shocking, horrifying and absorbing, and I found myself not wanting to put this book down, despite the disturbing subject matter and themes (which I won’t give away here so as not to ruin anything).
I really liked that there were two timeframes and storylines, as it allows the reader to slowly uncover more and more about certain characters, and how their history could be linked, and offers – as the title suggests – a different version of the story.
There are some truly evil characters in this novel alongside those I ended up rooting for, and BP Walter has also created some people whose truthworthiness seemed unclear, adding to the sense of unease, confusion and intrigue.
This is definitely not an ‘easy’ read – it pushes many difficult buttons and it certainly doesn’t pull any punches, meaning it could be difficult reading for many, but it’s really well crafted and clever, and I raced through it in no time. Definitely an author to watch!
[Rating: 4/5]
Many thanks to Avon Books for providing a copy of this book on which I chose to write an honest and unbiased review.
[About the Author]
B P Walter works as a social media co-ordinator for Waterstones, based at their HQ in Piccadilly. A Version of the Truth is his debut novel.
Follow BP Walter on Twitter and buy A Version of the Truth here.
Well said, it did push all the buttons. Well crafted review. I loved the book too. There was something raw in it